The 2007 College Cost Reduction and Access Act (CCRAA) spawned two huge problems in federal financial aid: It caused fights over arbitrary interest rates and it established an ill-designed student loan repayment program.

As a knowledge-based workforce has trans­formed the American economy over the last several decades, few people have questioned the value of higher education. Enrollment has surged at all types of colleges—up by more than one-third in just the last decade—as the college credential has become the ticket to a better life. From a purely economic stand­point, the numbers back up the prevailing wisdom that college is worth it: College graduates earn more and are less likely to be unemployed than those with only high school diplomas.

The stories of college graduates burdened with mountains of debt and poor job prospects have been well documented in this recession year. But while these students do face real problems in today’s tough economy, their degree will still likely prove to be a wise investment even as the recession draws to a close.

This isn’t the case for another group of borrowers who may have bigger financial problems, even if the economy rebounds. What is happening to borrowers who did not graduate, but still have loans to repay?